Wilderness

Summer plans. There's this thing about New York, when it gets warm, we come alive. It's as if everyone's been hibernating and how we're all waking up, stretching out and seeing the sun and we're ready to take it all in. Your head fills with images of piers and beaches and brunches in the sun. You're all about ice cream and an open fire hydrant. You look longingly at shorts in displays and buy a new pair of sunglasses that make you look just like Sophia Loren! I love summer in New York.

But one of the best parts is getting out of New York! And that's why my girls and I are planning a trip to my parents lake house. A weekend trip for all of us at the end of the summer. And we are going all out! First we're borrowing a friends cousin's minivan so we can pack all 8 or so of us! We're also having a fundraiser to pay for the ever increasing price of gas! We're going to have a Williamsburg Lemonade Stand/Bake Sale/Kissing Booth! Hurray. Then we'll spend a few days sunning, playing in the water, hiking the gully, eating homemade food and drinking local wine and enjoying some quality girl time! Ahhh, this is the life...

Wilderness- Middle Brother

New Yorker Cartoon

Sniffle, I'm illin. This all go lifestyle is catching up to me a bit. I'm sorry I haven't posted in so long. Things have been nuts! I started my internship and it's amazing! It's so much work, I've never worked so hard in my life(especially for no money). But I'm learning so much. I was worried that I wouldn't be good enough and I wasn't sure how to show them how much I want this job or that I'm good at what I do. But I'm getting the hang of it and I'm doing well and working harder than I could have imagined.

Things are also going well at the venue, really well in fact. I'm working multiple front of the house positions as well as doing office work. The managers seem to really like me and frequently refer to my great work ethic. It's not the norm for employees to work multiple positions so what they're doing for me is a unique and important opportunity and one they clearly were in need of. I know I'm doing well there and even though it's just a bar job for now it has the potential to really help me out in the future. It's also nice because I'm meeting so many great and interesting people there.

As far as dating, I'm actually doing it. I've been dating my ex the comedian for about a month now. He's actually moving to LA in a week, so we will be breaking up. But for this month it's been good, and simple. It's basically dating with training wheels, which I think I needed. I've been through a lot emotionally in the past few years and I needed something easy to remind me that things can be good.

New York is also coming back to life. My little park is all in bloom and filled with kids and dogs and ice cream trucks. My friends and I are planning picnics and trips and my allergies are back for the season. I'm thrilled to be in NYC for the summer again, it's my favourite time. Even though it's brutally hot and smelly, it's beyond fun. The city comes alive and it's as if everyones come out of hibernation. I always think of the Death Cab for Cutie song Summer Skin. It really is as if everyone emerges in new skin, glowing and ready to recharge in the sun like little solar panels. All the pain and hardship of winter is instantly forgotten and we greet the new season like sailors seeing land. Summer in New York is my favourite and I'm thrilled to be spending another one here.

One Of These Things First

First Day by acelovesvintage featuring retro shades

What I WISH I was wearing to my first day at my internship. Sadly, this outfit is about a million times out of my budget. But a girl can dream. Tonight I'm getting my haircut as well, so it's a big day! Wish me luck!

Summersong

Ten things I'm looking forward to about summer...

1) Margaritas on the peer

2) Biking around Brooklyn on my cute blue bike Daisy

3) Roof parties

4) Concerts in the park

5) Festivals!! Thus far I'm going to The Northside Festival and The Newport Folk Festival

6) Tiny summer dresses!

7) Fire escape garden

8) Red clog sandals

9) Summer rain storms

10) Beer gardens!

Summerskin

Now, I normally don't post much about makeup. Cause the thing is, I don't switch it up all that much. A little bronzer, a little blush, a little black eyeliner and I'm done. I've got friends who are makeup goddesses. I've even got friends who are makeup artists, but me, I'm pretty simple. That's why I love these pictures. They're natural with a little bit more. The top one has that lovely dusty rose colored lip and the bottom one those perfectly winged eyes with little else.
Are you a makeup kind of girl or more natural? I will admit the love of a good red lipstick and lately I've been wearing a lot more lipstick in general. My go to fancy look has always been winged liquid liner. Do you have a go to look?

This Love is Over

I am in the middle of that tricky process of getting over someone. It's not fun, I've done it before, but this time seems trickier. Maybe because I'm in such an uncertain and transitional time in my life, maybe it's the fact that it was the kind of relationship that "almost" happened but didn't quite make it, maybe because I did that crazy thing of getting rid of all the little flirtations I had going on the side and just going for it. Whatever the case, I'm trying to get "over". And it's not easy.

I've been thinking about ways I've gotten over breakups in the past to try and give myself some ideas. There was my freshman year friend breakup where I cried for weeks straight and then finally dragged my behind out and volunteered for an animal rescue(huge help for someone who was seriously gun-shy about meeting new people). There was my breakup from my first serious boyfriend, that one I just jumped right into another serious relationship, not a good idea. Then there was that breakup where I moved to NYC and ended up having a fling with a french artist, that worked out well.

And finally there was my break up with the Comedian, my first real breakup since my "big" breakup. That one was tough, even though it wasn't a very serious relationship. I moved home(bad idea) went on vacation with my best friend(great idea), had a rebound relationship(kinda ok idea) and removed him from my life completely(no phone, no facebook, nada). We're friends with benefits more or less now but now when I look back I can't even see why I thought it was such a great thing in the first place.

So now I've come up with a list of things. Not just things to do to get over someone but also things that make me feel good. And here it is...

1) Obviously spend time with friends, and mine have been great about all of this.

2) Spend time alone! People forget this(me too). Sometimes you need to sit with those thoughts and feelings and accept them. Write, read, watch movies, do yoga, whatever.

3) Paint your nails and toes. It sounds weird but it's true. And it matters that you do them. Really take your time and do a good job. It gives you time to do something for you and makes you feel pretty.

4) Make good food, healthy food. I've been bad about this lately, but it really does help. Taking care of yourself is a big part of feeling good about yourself.

5) These are my personal things that help. Coconut lotion or shampoo, the smell makes me smile. Grapefruit and honeysuckle perfume, my summer scent. Plants, they cheer me up, living things make life better!

What helps you get over someone/something?

FYI, my blog titles are now all song titles. Can you guess what they are?

I Wanna Be Where Your Heart Is Home

As you all know I've moved to Brooklyn. I'm still living in Bed Stuy, but this time I've got a little 4th floor walk up near a park. It's a nice place, though it's not my dream place. The kitchen really leaves a lot to be desired. I seriously lack in cabinet and counter space. So I've been trying to remedy those issues with creative and colorful storage options.
These pictures are just dreamy and I love a colorful, quirky kitchen that's just filled with stuff to inspire me. I'm not one of those sleek, modern, kitchen kind of girls. Like with everything else, I like a little whimsy.

Kick Drum Heart

The good times keep rolling in. I just found out yesterday that I got my internship!! And they want me to start immediately! I will be starting as soon as Friday. I also start training at my bar job tonight. It is actually pretty intense, I have to train for three shifts then take a test! Things are about to get crazy busy but I have a feeling it's going to be great. I've been trying for years to get this internship and I've finally got it, now I've just got to bust my ass for the next few months and really shine at these jobs(which means I'll be buying one of these). But I'm super excited, this is the stuff I've been trying to get into and now I've got the chance to do it.

I'm also saving my pennies to go to The Newport Folk Festival(if you haven't checked it out by now you should, immediately!). Though I'm hoping my parents will shell out as a congratulations present, dare to dream. I'm planning to go with a bunch of friends, some from here, some from Boston, it should be great! I know that the ExBossFriend will be there, and that I'll be dealing with him a lot in the coming months with these two jobs, but right now I just don't care all that much.

On the topic of dating, meh. It's not happening all that much. I've been spending a decent amount of time with my Comedian Ex. Mostly I think because he's moving in a month and that's dating with an expiration date. Oddly enough that works for me right now. I'm not over ExBossFriend and not quite ready to jump back in there so for now I'm ok with dating with training wheels.

I've Been Told I'm Rather Cat Like

Cause Lord knows I land on my feet and I'm beginning to think I may even have 9 lives. Sunday afternoon I randomly sent out my resume to all the local venues. None of them were advertising, but I figured why not? About an hour later I got a text saying "Hey Ace, call me tomorrow so we can set up a time to meet, So and So From Cool Venue". Weird, non? But awesome. A few hours after that I got a text from my old boss informing me he had just said nice things about me to the owners of said cool venue. Hurray again!

The next day I gave them a ring and the owner told me to come in around 4, which I did. I waited a bit then met with the owner who basically asked me to tell him about myself. Which I did. I explained that I'm a recent graduate, with the golden ticket of a music degree, I told him about the internship I had interviewed for and my need to support my habit of volunteering in my feild and that working at a venue seemed like the most logical way to do that. So he says to me "see here's the thing, we're not hiring" and of course my heart sinks. "But," he says "I saw your resume and it's great and your old boss said such great things about you and the fact is I have a really good feeling about you and I want you here". WHAT??!!

So he says to me that he can't promise I'll be in the production and booking side of things right away or all the time but that he wants me to get to know everything. I'm going to start off at the desk and hostessing, then learn to serve, then bartend, learn stage set up, production, booking and marketing. Basically, he wants me to know everything. He had assumed I was looking for a music job, I was just looking to pour beers! So they are going to give me a call in a few days to start figuring out where to put me and get me trained. Holy bananas! Now if I get this internship as well I get to be on both sides of things seeing how it works from the inside out! At long last, my first paid semi music job!

A few months ago I went back to Boston for the first time and saw an old professor of mine. While explaining the oddessy that finding a music job has been for me he says to me "I don't worry about you, you've got rubber soles, you always land on your feet". I'm this close to things really working out and I'm hoping like hell that it all falls into place. Wish me luck!

On a side note, I'll be out of town and incommunicado for a few days since I'll be home in the backwoods for my birthday with my family. Upon my return I shift gears into the hyper drive that the next few months of my life will hopefully be. Promise to write again soon!

Interviews, Interviews, Interviews

Well, I had my interview. And I actually think it went pretty darn well. The guy who interviewed me was only a few years older than me and was really cool. We knew a lot of the same people, I've worked with a lot of the bands on their roster and we vibed well. I'm hopeful, dear God I'm hoping. I still haven't found employment to support this pipe dream I call a career in music but I'm trying. I don't think I got the bar job at the bar my friend works at, but I'm still trying. This whole being unemplyed thing is kicking my ass but at the same time I've always done my best when I'm up against the wall and I'm just trying to hold onto faith that I will claw my way out of this.

In other news, dating. It's not really happening. Like I said I ended thing with my musician ex boss/ex boyfriend. Friday was my birthday and I didn't hear from him at all, which was pretty much the last nail in the coffin. The french guy I was dating two years ago is still in my life, though at this point only as a friend and he's taking me out tonight for my birthday. I know he still loves me, but at this point in my life I'm just not ready to have anyone else be a part of it. So for now I'm hanging out with my girlfriends and kicking the job markets ass and that's just going to have to be enough for now.

Have you guys ever lost your job or felt a bit out of place? New York City is pretty much kicking my ass up and down the street right now but I still love her. How do you guys get through tough times?

The Good, The Bad, The City

I'm back. And good lord a lot has changed...Let's get started.

First I live in Brooklyn. I moved randomly on a Tuesday, on whim, and I've stayed for the past 7 months. I crashed at the old Halsey house for the first month. It has since been condemned. I got a job managing a salon and I grew to hate it, then I got fired. Now I'm unemployed and I've got an interview at my dream company on Friday, which also happens to be my birthday. I've got a little apartment, it's painted turquoise, it's on a park, in the ghetto. I've got an amazing group of girlfriends, we're all musicians, and artists, and broke. I was dating a nice boy, he was not a boy since he was 10 years older than me, but he is moving to Boston, and I'm not dating him anymore. I was dating a not so nice boy, the same not so nice boy musician I was dating in Boston. He moved here, he did not move for me, we are not dating any longer. I am in love with New York and it is kicking my ass. I'm broke, I'm tired, I'm lost and completely head over heels with my city. It's about time I started blogging about it.